Middlesex (338 and 169-2) lead Somerset (264-9) by 243 runs

Assured: Nick Gubbins made 67 for Middlesex in a century partnership with Dawid MalanPhoto: GETTY IMAGES

By Tim Wigmore, at Uxbridge

8:51PM BST 09 Jul 2014

Middlesex and Somerset both still retain Championship ambitions, but as Yorkshire continue to surge, their claims are becoming more tenuous. In the circumstances, a little funky captaincy does not go amiss.

Marcus Trescothick tried to provide it. After Somerset had frittered away a position from which they could have dreamt of a first-innings lead, not helped by a mix-up between Alex Barrow and Nick Compton, he declared his side's first innings on 264-9 – still trailing Middlesex by 74 – to try to imbue the game with more edge. It seemed to work, too, as Chris Rogers edged an Alfonso Thomas away swinger behind to the third ball of the innings.

Middlesex have often been accused of over-reliance on Rogers, and, thanks to England, they now lack his trusty opening partner Sam Robson too. But if Somerset spied an opportunity they were left disappointed. Nick Gubbins and Dawid Malan combined for their second century partnership of the game.

Gubbins has made an assured start as Robson’s replacement: his 67* is his third Championship half-century in four innings. He has the appearance of an accumulator rather than dominator; so the comparisons with another left-handed Middlesex opener from Radley College – Andrew Strauss – may become familiar, even if the resemblance at the crease is not overly striking. “He’s kind of shown the path,” Gubbins said.

He normally acquires his runs unobtrusively at the crease, but Gubbins also possesses a pull shot to behold. Picking up a short ball from Lewis Gregory with rare speed, he belied his slight build to deposit it into the car park, matching a similar shot in the first innings. “Sometimes I just see it short and go for it,” he said.

Plenty more such shots will be needed to set up an exciting prospect tomorrow. There are few better men to set up a declaration than Eoin Morgan, who thumped George Dockrell over long off for six. Middlesex lead by 243 and around 360 in 75 overs could provide a finish to savour, though the suspicion is the 40 overs lost to rain will ensure a draw.

“The new ball does a bit but when it softens up it’s hard to score but also to get people out,” was Gubbins’s assessment. “The main thing is we’re in a position to reassess now.”